Resettlement Policy in Large Development Projects

Hydropower generation by construction of large dams attracts considerable attention as a feasible renewable energy source to meet the power demand in Asian cities. However, large dam development projects cause involuntary resettlement. Of the world’s forty to eighty million resettlers, many resettlers have been unable to rebuild their livelihood after relocation and have become impoverished.

This book uniquely explores the long-term impacts of displacement and resettlement. It shows that long-term post-project evaluation is necessary to assess the rehabilitation and livelihood reconstruction of resettlers after relocation. It focuses on large dam projects in a number of Asian countries, including Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Turkey, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, which are often ignored in Displacement studies in favour of China or India. Drawing on a wealth of empirical data over ten years, it presents crucial factors for successful resettlement by analysing lessons learned. The range of countries allow for a diverse and complex set of factors and outcomes to be analysed. Many of the factors for successful resettlement recur despite the cases being different in implementation period and location. The book presents highly original findings gathered by local researchers in the field directly talking to resettlers who were relocated more than a decade ago.

The book suggests a new paradigm of resettlement for resettlers to attain long-term sustainable livelihoods. This original book is a unique resource for researchers and postgraduate students of development studies, environment, geography, sociology and anthropology. It also makes policy recommendations for future resettlement programs that are of great value to development policy makers, planners, water resources engineers and civil society protest groups.

Ryo Fujikura is Professor at the Faculty of Humanity and Environment, Hosei University, Japan.

Mikiyasu Nakayama is Professor at the Department of International Studies, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo, Japan.